Inspired By Nature: Biocement

Eight percent of the world’s carbon emissions come from one source. It accounts for more carbon emissions than every country on the planet, apart from the United States and China, and exceeds the carbon emissions of 170 million cars. The culprit? Cement. It is in our homes and is spread throughout our communities. Concrete, the key component of cement, is the second-most consumed substance on Earth after water.

Portland cement has been industrially produced since the early 1800s. Producers combine a mix of mined materials, largely crushed limestone, and heat them to high temperatures (roughly 1400°C). The heat drives a reaction, leaving behind calcium oxide, which then reacts with silicates to form cement. During that time, large amounts of carbon dioxide are released into the environment through calcination and fossil fuel combustion.

Bacteria under the microscope ©Biomason

Biomason offers an alternative to portland cement called Biocement. This technology uses carbon as a building block, combining it with calcium to create microbiologically formed mineral cement within concrete products at ambient temperatures. The patented process eliminates the need for cement kilns and calcination emissions by mimicking how calcium carbonate—a material commonly found in eggshells, coral, seashells and limestone—grows in nature, harnessing carbon rather than emitting it as a byproduct. Biomason uses biotechnology to recreate this natural process in less than 72 hours, and its Biocement products meet or exceed standard material performances, including compressive strength testing.

Production of Biocement ©Biomason

Cofounder and CEO Ginger Krieg Dosier was inspired by marine structures like shells and coral during early childhood trips to the beach. She was fascinated by how these structures were grown, and later pursuits in her discipline in architecture and academia probed a deeper investigation to uncover if we could produce cement similar to how natural marine structures are made.

Dosier incorporated Biomason in 2012 and has since built a team representing more than 50 disciplines to accelerate Biocement’s global expansion. Biomason recently partnered with Denmark’s largest concrete producer, IBF, to launch commercial-scale manufacturing, with production starting in April 2023. The company also works with the U.S. Department of Defense on developing novel applications of Biocement technology.

Biomason describes its technology as proactive rather than reactive. Instead of working to limit the impact of traditional cement production, Biomason created a new process altogether. They plan to continue scaling the Biocement technology platform and growing licensing partnerships worldwide to remove 25 percent of carbon emissions from the global concrete industry by 2030.

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